Eletrobras and Shell Team Up on Offshore Wind Projects in Brazil

Eletrobras and Shell have signed a cooperation agreement in Brazil that could lead to the Brazilian electric utilities company investing into offshore wind farms in the country together with Shell.

The agreement, signed on 15 December in Rio de Janeiro, covers the exchange of information for a possible co-investment in the development and operation of offshore wind energy projects in Brazil. The objective of the agreement is to identify areas for a possible partnership in the development and implementation of projects.

As reported in March this year, Shell already applied for environmental investigation licences for six offshore wind developments, with a total capacity of 17 GW, with Brazil’s Institute for the Environment and Natural Resources (IBAMA).

The licences for which Shell submitted applications will be granted for environmental site investigations that will support the developers’ feasibility and environmental assessment studies.

In a press release issued on 15 December, announcing the cooperation, Electrobras did not specify if it would join Shell on the projects that have been already proposed.

Director of Generation at Eletrobras, Pedro Jatobá, said that the company seeks to identify generation potentials for the development of studies that make it possible to compose a portfolio of studies and projects for the future development of business in power generation.

“Considering that the eventual development of a project demands previous studies on the viability of potential areas for its implementation, the companies Eletrobras and Shell are interested in jointly carrying out the necessary studies”, said Director of Generation at Eletrobras, Pedro Jatobá.

In Brazil, there are currently 71 applications for environmental investigation licences for offshore wind projects at IBAMA’s desk, totalling more than 176 GW.

Shell has applied to carry out studies for potential offshore wind farms in waters offshore the states of Piauí, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, and Rio Grande do Sul.

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